Reciprocatory plate-feeder.



E. RAMSAY. I

RECIPROCATORY PLATE FEEDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2. IBM.

Iutgnfod Oct. 10,1916.

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RECIPROCATORY PLATE FEEDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2. 191 4.

m. l m h UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

nasxmn' n M'sAY, or BIRMINGH M, ALABAMA.

RECIPROCATORY ATE-FEEDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 2, 1914. Serial No. 885,932.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it know-n that I, ERSKINE 'RAMsAY, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing at Birmingham, in the county of Jeflferson and Stateof Alabama, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inReciprocatory Plate-Feeders, of

- which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to automatic feeders of the reciprocating type, fordelivering material' from chutes or hoppers to conveyers, screens,crushers. or the like where it is desired that the material be feduniformly and automatically and in regulable quantity.

The object of my invention is to increase the capacity and the constancyor regularity of the feed of a reciprocating plate feeder. By the use ofmy invention I am enabled to increase the capacity of the hopper to theextent required for the increased feed withvide the reciprocating platefeeder with a central opening so arranged that the material will rest onboth ends of the plate which is reciprocated so that its opening travelsonly between points just between the angle of'repose of thetwo bodies ofmaterial. As the plate moves in either direction it carries forwardmaterial from' one body while it discharges material from the other bodyby sliding its opening under it. By this arrangement'the material is fedequally with each movement of the plate, and, practically speaking,continuously during the travel in each direction of the plate,

' thereby doubling the capacity of the present types of reciprocatingplate feeders and at the same time without increasing the head roomrequired for the hopper. The reason for the increased capacity is thateach movement of the plate serves equally to discharge a predeterminedquantity of material on one side while drawing apredetermined quantityofmaterial on'the other side to be discharged on the return stroke sothat in effect it is continuousl charging and discharging and the result1s a pract cally continuous flow of material which can be accuratelyregulated as to quantity. Y

My invention further comprises the novel detalls of construction andarrangement of parts which in their preferred embodiment .Only arehereinafter more particularly dela scrlbed and claimed, reference beinghad to Patented Oct. 10, 1916.

the accompanying drawings which form apart of this specification, and inwhich 2- Figure 1 1s a partial plan view of a hopper wh1ch 1s brokenaway to show the reciprocating feeder plate partly in plan view. Fig. 2is an enlarged cross sectional view taken on the line y -g of Fig. 1.Figs.

3 and 4 are longitudinal vertical sectional views taken on the line w-wof Fig. 1 and showing the feeder plate in different operatlng positions.

Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts throughout thedrawings. 7

In illustrating the preferred embodiment of my invention I have shown areciproeating feeder plate 1 operating to control the feed of materialfrom a hopper 2. It,

will be understood that the form of hopper shown is typical of thedischarge end of any suitable type of bin, hopper or chute from whichthe material is to be fed. In the preferred construction, the hopperbottom has end Walls 3 symmetrically sloped from its ends toward itsbottom discharge opening 4. The side walls of the hopper jalsopreferably slope toward this opening, but this is not essential. I mountin the hopper a transverse partition 5 which extends entirely across thehop- Above the opening 4' per and overhangs thebottom opening 4.

This partition has its side edges downturned and bolted or riveted tothe hopper sides and it acts to divide the material in the hopper intotwo bodies which move between its end edges'and the sloping walls 3 ofthe hopper and fall upon the ends of the feeder plate 1, but it'will benoted that the hopper walls 3 support nearly all the weight of thematerial. I have indicated by dotted lines theline of repose ofxthesetwo bodies of material which would be naturally assumed by them when.unafi'ected by the movement of the feeder plate and with the partitionadjusted as shown.

The feeder plate is provided at an mter- [mediate point preferably atits center with a rectangular feed opening 6 which corresponds in widthwith the hopper opening 4, but is narrow as compared with the hopperopening. The end edges of the feed opening 6 are reinforced bytransverse angle bars 7 fastened to the. underside of the 5 feederplate. The feeder plate itself is preferably formedin two parts whichare rectangular in shape and are fastened alongtheir side edges inspaced relation to the side bars 8 of a swinging frameformed by sidebars and hanging rods 9. The side bars 8 are formed by angle bars withtheir vertical legs disposed to the outside and made wider than theirinturned horizontal legs to which the 'platesare fastened.- The rods 9arepassed down through elongated openings in the horizontal legsv of thebars near their ends "and have threaded thereon nuts 10 and lock nuts11. The rods 9 have their side bars 8. The plates 1 are suitablyattached to the bar 8 preferably by means which permit of-theirreadyremoval or relative adjustment so that the may .be moved more closelytogether or arther apart in the frame as the condition of the work orthe material to be handled may require.

Attached to theunderside of the bars 8 near .one' end of the frame arehanger bearings .in which is mounted a cross shaft 16. This shaft isconnected by a rod 17 to the crank' shaft 18 which is, mounted insuitable bearings 19 and driven by means of a sprocket wheel 20- 'orinanyothe'r suitable manner. The connecting rod 17 is preferably formedby a piece of strap metal, the ends of which are bent about theshafts 16and 18 and fas tenedsto the main body of the strapby bolts or rivets 21.

, Underimany conditions it desirable to regulate the distance betweenthe end edges of the partition 5 and the hopper walls 3, or in otherwords, to vary the width of the passage through which. the dividedbodies of material pass down to the reciprocating byadjustablyjconnecting slides 22 to the of bolts 23 which pass throughthe artition and through elongated slots 24 in t e slides 22. By thisarrangement the slides can be drawn together to give the maximum widthminimum the openings for the flowof "inaterialto the feederv plate. Theside edgesof the, bars 8, as shown its Fig. 2, overlap the'side edges ofthe bottom of the hoppersuificiently to prevent the escape sidewise ofthe left, this material advanced will be fed through the opening 6 ofthe plate.

length of travel of the feeder plate, as for feeder plate. Thisadjustment I provide for partition near, each edge thereof by means ofopenings'or spread apart to reduce to a.

' .rately controlled and it extreme of itstravel to the left in Fig. 4.

The dotted-lines through the two bodies of material indicate theirrespective lines or angles of repose. Obviously these lines will changewhen the slides 22- are shifted to vary the end openings which regulatethe thicknessof .said bodies. The shifting of the plate to the left(Fig. 4:) advances the 8( material at the right hand end of the hop per'beyond its normal line of repose and it is this advanced portion ofmaterial that is fed through the feed opening 6 as the plate shifts tothe right- (Fig. 3). As itmoves to the right, the plate is, in likemanner, advancing material at the left hand end of the hopper-beyondits'line of repose so that when the plate starts its return travel toThe travel of the plate is such as to confine the movements of its feedopening 6 between the lines or angles of repose of the two bodies 5 ofmaterial, for the opening shouldnot pass in either direction beyond aline of repose so as to permit of a direct gravity fall of materialtherethrough as under such conditions the feeder .plate loses controlover both the character and quantity of the feed. Preferably the opening6 is made sufficiently narrow and the movements of the feeder plate issuch that it will not pass beyond the extreme inner angles of repose ofthe bodies of material when the slides 22 are shifted to give themaximum feed openmg for the material. If desired, however, the feedopening may be prevented passing dlfi'erent lines of repose bycontrolling the instance, by usingan adjustable eccentric 26 to drive itinstead of the crank drive shown in Fig. 1, or the same end may beobtained in the crank driven construction by drawing the 'pla'tes'lclosertogether or moving them farther apart to vary the size of the feedopening. The uantity of the feed may thus regulate either by the-size ofthe feed fopening 6, by thd'position of the slides 22, by thespeed of"rotation of the drive shaft 18 which-will give the plate a greaterorlesser number of feeding. movements per minute, why the length of thereciprocating movements of the feeder plate. By the means described thefeed can be very accuwill be practically continuous. v v

Obviously the partition-employed efiect divides the hopper into twochutes which feed separate bodies of .material to the feeder plate and Idesire it understood that means of any character whatever that willdeliver two bodies of material to the feeder plate in the mannerdescribed, may be substituted for the single divided hopper shown.

uantity fed from the other body. This' unction of the apparatus is ofparticular advantage for both measuring and mixing different materialsin prescribed percentages. The details of construction illustrated. arethose which have been demonstrated in practice as thoroughly practicalbut they may be obviously varied in many respects without departing fromthe principles which underlie my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A reciprocating feeder comprising a feeder plate having a feed openinintermediate its ends, which ends are eac adapted to simultaneouslysupport a body of material to be fed, feed means having end plates todeliver and maintain a body of material to be fed on each end of saidplate free to assume an angle of repose from each end toward the centerof the plate, guidesfor the plate, and means to reciprocate the plateendwise thereof in a manner to confine the travel of the feed openingtherein between and not beyond the end plates of said feed means, saidfeed means being adapted to hold the material against movement with thefeeder plate except toward the feed opening in the latter. y

2. A reciprocating feeder comprising a hopper having a bottom dischargeopening,

- a partition disposed above said opening and acting to divide thematerial into two bodies as it approaches said opening, a reciprocatingfeeder plate onto the ends of which said bodies of material pass andwhich has an intermediate feed opening therein, and means to reciprocatesald plate endwise and a 'manner to confine .the travel of the openingtherein between the angles of repose of not pass material resting oneach end of said plate,

substantially as described.

4. A reciprocating feeder comprising in combination a hopper having itsbottom walls sloping toward a substantially central bottom opening, atransverse horizontal partition disposed across the hopper above theopening therein and having its side edges spaced substantiallyequi-distantly from said sloping bottom walls, means to adjust thepartition to vary the space between its edges and the hopper walls, afeeder plate with an intermediate feed opening which has the transversewidth of the hopper opening but is narrow relatively to the hopperopening,

means to supportsaid feed plate for reciprocation, and means toreciprocate said plate endwise, said means being adapted to limit thetravel of said feed opening between points just within the angle ofrepose of the material resting on each end of the plate, substantiallyas described.

5. A reciprocating feeder comprising a hopper having a dischargeopening, means in the hopper to divide the material into two bodiesadapted to approach said opening from opposite sides, a reciprocatingfeeder plate onto the ends of which said bodies of material pass andwhich has an intermediate feed opening, means which provide for anadjustment in the size of said feed opening, and means to reciprocatesaid plate endwise.

6. A reciprocating feeder comprising a hopper having a dischargeopening, adjustable means in the hopper to divide the material into twobodies adapted to approach said opening from opposite sides, areciprocatin feeder fplate onto the ends of which said odies 0 materialare guided by. the hopper walls and which has an intermediate feedopening, and means to reciprocate said plate endwise between the-endwalls of said hopper so thatthe opemn' g in said late does beyond thesame, substai itially as described.

7 A reciprocating feeder comprising a reciprocatory feeder plate havingan intermeplate and leave its feed opening free for the loo discharge ofmaterial therethrough throughout the travel of the plate, chute means todischarge two bodies of material to be fed onto the plate on oppositesides of its feed opening, means to reciprocate said plate, and separatemeans to regulate the'fiow of said bodies of material to the plate. I

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

. EnsKmE Ramsay.

Witnesses: i i

R. D. Jomrs'ron, Jr., Lncrm Pncnmr.

110 diate feed opemng, means to support said

